So in the latest cold spell we had, my truck battery died. It could no longer drum up the power to crank the engine. May it rest in peace......

It's been quite awhile since I've had to buy a battery for a vehicle, so I wasn't quite sure what to expect when it came to prices.....

HOLY CRAP Battery Man!

For my vehicle, in a cold-weather climate and needing 850 cold cranking amps..... Here are the prices of the leading battery providers:

Interstate: $164

AutoZone: $134

O'Reilly Auto Parts: $134

Sure, Interstate is perhaps the most well known, considered the top of the line, but is it? Really? Is Interstate's 850 cold crank amp battery really any better than anybody else's, or is it just marketing? And then you get the two most popular auto parts stores and their respective offerings.... Gosh, can you tell there is competitive pricing there?

Enter, Walmart.

The price for Walmart's Everstart 65 Maxx, with 850 cold cranking amps, is $95. It's got a 5 year warranty, just like all the others.

If you are going to install a battery yourself, this is a no brainer. Walmart is the way to go. And here's something you may not know..... Take your old battery into the store when buying a new one, it saves you about $18 in a "core fee". If you turn in your old battery, you won't get charged.

And if you do decide to have a service center install a battery for you, make sure they don't charge you a "core fee." They took out the old battery and kept it. They didn't ask you if you wanted to keep it, they didn't put it in your trunk, so don't let them charge you that fee.